World News in Brief: July 10

Flooding in India's northeastern state of Assam has affected over 62,000 people, India's official broadcaster All India Radio (AIR) said Tuesday (July 9). Floods are an annual occurrence in Assam during the monsoon season.

* France, Germany, Britain and the EU High Representative on Tuesday expressed "deep concerns" over Iran's fresh move to raise the concentration of its enriched uranium beyond agreed limits, calling for an urgent meeting of a joint commission on the issue.

* Russian-made S-400 air defense missile systems are being delivered to Turkey according to existing plans, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday. According to the Turkish Defense Ministry, the deployment of S-400 missile systems is likely to begin in October.

* Top US diplomat for East Asia David Stilwell will kick off his first Asian tour by visiting four countries (including Japan, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea and Thailand) between July 10 and 21, said the US State Department on Tuesday.

* A deputy ministerial level meeting between the United Sates and Russia will be held in Helsinki on Wednesday, both the United States and Russian representatives confirmed to media on Tuesday. Taking part in the meeting will be US Under Secretary of State David Hale and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov.

* Yemen's pro-government forces on Tuesday announced foiling two attacks launched by the Houthi rebels in the country's southern province of Dhalea, leaving 20 attackers killed.

* The President of the European Council Donald Tusk said on Tuesday that the talks on a new EU-Azerbaijan agreement were nearing completion, according to the state-run news agency AZERTAC.

* US President Donald Trump met with visiting Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani at the White House on Tuesday, as tensions with Iran continue to smolder. The emir's visit to Washington also aims at strengthening security and economic ties with the United States, according to statements from the White House.

* As of 2020, the French government will impose a new green tax on plane tickets for all flights departing from the country's airports as part of its plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and generate more funds to invest in cleaner transport infrastructure, Transport Minister Elisabeth Borne announced in Paris on Tuesday.

* The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2019 of UN said the global extreme poverty rate declined from 35.9 percent in 1990 to 9.9 percent in 2015. Despite the huge reduction, the baseline projections suggest that 6 percent of the world's population will still be living in extreme poverty in 2030, if current trends continue.

* The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Tuesday called for an immediate ceasefire in southern Libya following tribal fighting.

* Iraqi President Barham Salih on Tuesday underlined the importance of boosting ties with the European Union and continuing coordination and consultation on issues of mutual interest.